


Road Trip to Nowhere

by momothesweet



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Diners, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Breakfast, F/F, Road Trips, Travel, and it's 1 in the morning, oops it's not a oneshot anymore
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-26
Updated: 2014-12-24
Packaged: 2018-02-10 11:48:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,073
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2023968
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/momothesweet/pseuds/momothesweet
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's 1 in the morning, and Ymir makes a stop at a diner in the middle of a desert and chats with the cute, coffeepot-wielding waitress.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

She was really, really cute.

But what was she doing out here in the middle of nowhere at an old diner by herself?

Ymir fiddled with the sugar packets in its little container as she waited for her 1am breakfast to arrive. Nobody else was in the 50s-themed eatery, not counting the chipped, freaky statue of Elvis enjoying a cup of coffee and sitting in the corner booth. She was comfortably placed on the opposite end, with a skylit view of the open road and the desert out ahead.

When Christa greeted her, Ymir was annoyed. How could she be this cheerful at one in the morning? Not that she had a thousand customers to deal with all day...or did she? Who would stop at such a run-down place that smells like burnt toast and plastic?

 _Me,_ Ymir thought _. I would. Because I was stupid enough to stop somewhere for my empty stomach. I should've bought more beef jerky packets ten miles back._

She looked up for probably the fourth time, and found Christa with the same smile she greeted her with. She carried a full plate of scrambled eggs, bacon, and pancakes in one hand and the pot of coffee in the other.

"Your King Special," she said. Her voice was like daylight - not dark and mysterious and ever-wondering of the universe. Ymir wanted to hear her voice, but she didn't know how to keep up the conversation besides a simple "thank you."

"It's no problem," she said. She poured some more coffee into her mug. "And it's always nice to see a customer come in for our food!"

What was that supposed to mean? Ymir half-smiled; then again, that was the only thing she could do. Ten minutes ago, she looked up the place on her phone. Mary Sue's Diner - a hotspot for some of the most mediocre diner food in the tri-state area. There wasn't another Denny's or IHOP for another fifty miles, so this was her only option.

"So, where are you from?"

Ymir impulsively stabbed her eggs, the fork screeching on the plate. _Oh shit_ , she thought. _She's trying to talk to me. And she's really cute. Look at those blue eyes and pretty blonde hair and that light blue waitress uniform that makes her look angelic. And she's so tiny - I could fit her in my pocket._

"Uhh. Down south. Back in the city," she finally answered flatly.

"Really? Are you on vacation?"

All she could reply with was a shrug. "I guess so. What's it to you."

Christa blinked and took a small step back. "Oh. I was just wondering. I'll be back to check up on you, okay?"

Ymir nodded. She walked away quickly, not looking back.

 _Shit. I did it again,_ she thought. _Always scaring people away._ She shoved some more eggs in her mouth and tore off a piece of bacon, attempting to chew the harshness away.

Social situations were always a problem with Ymir. That was just how she was growing up. Parents were always away with work. Taken care of by housekeepers day by day. Never wanted to play with the others at school, never wanted to do group projects, never wanted to go to those parties her roommates invited her to. She just wanted to be alone.

That was the whole reason why she was taking this dumb trip. Maybe a trip to nowhere could make her figure things out. She couldn't be alone forever. She can't avoid people for the rest of her life unless she wanted to end up like those people living in caves rid of technology and modern pleasures. She enjoyed her smartphone, thank you very much.

But then she saw this girl.

She hadn't been in the diner for half an hour but she already knew she could be the one. The one person she could keep on talking to late at night and early in the morning. The one who could teach her how to make eggs without burning them and setting off the fire alarm. The one who couldn't make her feel so alone.

She swallowed some of the coffee to wash down the salty bacon, and cringed. _Ugh. Needs more sugar._

Christa returned several minutes after Ymir scarfed down the last bits of eggs and pancakes. She poured another cup of coffee.

"How was your food?"

God, she sounded so sincere. Like everything that came from her mouth was some sort of angelic tone only the righteous can hear. Not that Ymir could hear it, but she totally knew.

"It was good," Ymir said. "Really good."

"I'm glad you liked it," Christa said, smiling again. She pivoted and was about to walk away, when Ymir buckled up the courage to say something.

"Hey. Christa."

She turned around. "Is something wrong?"

"Do you...just, you know, want to sit down? And talk?"

_Could you be the one?_

Christa thought about her offer for a moment, and hesitantly sat across from Ymir in the booth.

Ymir's heart almost stopped when she sat down. She couldn't say anything.

"I guess I can take a little break. What did you want to talk about?"

Ymir's face turned red. "Uhh. Um. Err-"

"What's it like in the city?" Her eyes glowed, curious to hear about something she's probably never seen before.

 _Okay, easy question,_ she thought. _Tell her the truth. Don't fuck it up by lying._

"Boring," Ymir said. "Lots of cars and people talking on their phones about pointless things."

"Oh." The glow disappeared, and Christa looked down at the table.

Ymir bit her lip. _Shit. Shit. Too truthful. Fuck._

"Well. I mean, sometimes the park I live across from puts up lights all over the trees and the bushes for special occasions."

She looked back up. "Really?"

"Yeah. Like for Pride Week, all the lights were different colors of the rainbow and they did some sort of show by the lake and stuff."

"How was it?"

"I dunno. I didn't go."

Silence. Ymir's thoughts scrambled to find a way to keep her answer going.

"But I heard from my roommates that it was fun."

Christa smiled. "You have roommates?"

She nodded. "These two guys who are totally in love with each other and want to own their own bakery. But I always joked that one will sweat too much into their cupcakes and the other will end up squishing all of them because he's so muscular. They're alright. They wanted to bake me a cake to celebrate my 'road trip.'"

"Can you bake?"

"Nah. I was never that good in the kitchen. I tried to make a cake from a box one time. Almost burned down the apartment complex."

She giggled. It was the cutest thing Ymir had ever heard.

 _Okay,_ Ymir breathed carefully, we're getting somewhere. _And that laugh. Holy shit. But, like, she's so interested in all the things I'm saying. Maybe I should ask about her now._

"What about you? What do you do around here? There's nothing but dirt."

Christa looked out the window, then back at her. "There isn't a lot to do around here. But I like it. There's a couple who owns a flower shop twenty minutes away from where I live, and they can grow all these flowers even though it's so hot around here. I like the purple ones the best."

"You actually live here?"

She pointed behind her. "A few miles north. Did you think I lived here at the diner?"

"Kind of."

_Oh wait. Shit. Stupid answer again._

"Hah! You're funny, um..."

_Name. She wants your name._

"Ymir."

A smile again. And silence. The caffeine in the coffee kicked in right away and her heart was pounding. This is probably the longest conversation she's had with anyone besides her school counselor back in high school. _Keep it going. Don't lose her._

"So. Uh. Purple flowers?"

It took her a second to remember the original conversation. "Yeah. But they don't look like the normal flowers with the petals and stuff. They're different. I don't know what they're called."

Ymir didn't know, either.

"Sometimes, though...I wish I didn't live here."

Ymir leaned forward slightly, her chin propped up and resting on her hand. "You don't like it?"

"I mean I do, but...I want to go see other places, you know? I don't want to be stuck here waiting tables to nobody for the rest of my life." She sighed. Under her breath, Ymir heard her say "I should've gone to college."

She laughed. "Yeah. Me too."

Christa shut her mouth immediately and looked down in shame. She whispered, "I'm so stupid."

A spark was lit under Ymir's seat. "Hey. You're not stupid."

Her head shot up. "How would you know? You've only known me for five minutes!"

"I can tell by looking at you."

"You can tell by looking at me?"

"Yeah. I can tell you're a really smart girl. With dreams and shit. What do you want to do? I know you don't want to be here for the rest of your life. What do you want?"

She just looked at her. Her eyes weren't glowing. They were a dull blue, as if the life had been sucked out of them. Waves of guilt wanted to hit Ymir across the face. Her hand squeezed the empty coffee mug.

_I fucked up again. Fuck._

She wasn't sure how much time had passed, but it felt like an eternity before Christa answered her.

"I don't know what I want to do," she said softly. "I just know that I want to get out of here."

"So do I," she whispered back.

But Ymir didn't just mean the diner or the city. "Here" was a lot more than just a place.

"Oh! Your mug's empty. Do you want more coffee?"

She looked down at the mug. "Yes. Please."

"I'll be right back."

She scooted out of the booth and walked slowly back to the kitchen. Ymir sighed. The Elvis statue looked even creepier for whatever reason. The sky looked darker.

Christa returned with the pot of coffee. After pouring some more in Ymir's cup, she set the pot down at the edge of the table, and returned to her seat across from her. Ymir dumped three packets of sugar and a creamer into the coffee.

"You like it sweet," Christa said meekly.

"Yeah. It'll keep me awake for another couple hours."

"You're not going to sleep?"

She shook her head as she took another gulp. "I'm not really a sleeper."

"But you should get some rest. Where are you going again?"

"I don't know if I told you, but I don't know."

Her eyes widened. "What?"

"I have no idea where I'm going. I just want to be away. Away from everything. Wherever my piece-of-shit Honda and my savings account can take me."

Another pause.

"Can I come with you?"

Ymir's heart skipped a beat. She almost dropped the coffee mug. _Did she really just ask that?_

"Huh?"

"Yeah. Can I come with? I think I have enough money to leave, too. Wherever you're going, can I go too?"

There she was. The one who could make her feel like she wasn't so alone. The bad fluorescent lights of the diner shone on Christa like a spotlight, begging for Ymir to take the chance.

She finished her coffee. "Okay."

"Let me go get my coat."

Ymir gave her some money to pay for the food, and waited outside for her. It was cold out, colder than before she got to the diner. Her leather jacket, possibly the most expensive item she had (including her phone), kept her warm enough.

She looked up. Nothing interesting was up there. She wondered why so many people talked about how pretty the sky was...all she saw was darkness.

Christa appeared behind her, wearing a royal blue peacoat. So cute.

"Are you ready?" Ymir asked.

To her surprise, Christa shook her head. "No. But neither are you."

She was right.

And Ymir was okay with that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bonus: They stop at Christa's apartment first to grab some stuff and Ymir realizes that when apartments don't smell like sugar and chocolate they smell like wood shavings and leftover Chinese food.
> 
> I kind of like this au. Maybe I'll continue it. Maybe.
> 
> Comments and kudos are always appreciated. :)
> 
> *Note 4 October 2014 - after some thought plus you guys' requests, I think I WILL continue this story! Unfortunately, school has taken up a lot of my time, so I don't think I'll start writing until this December, so many apologies for that. Thanks so much for the support!


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The two are finally on the road, and they get to know each other a little more. Just a little.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! I present to you chapter 2 of RTTN. It's not very long...in fact, I may use this fic as an opportunity to help with writing longer pieces (I tend to write on the short side, if you've seen my other stuff).
> 
> Enjoy!

She didn’t want to wait.

She just wanted to leave.

Ymir was surprised at the speed Christa went to change clothes and to shove all possible items of clothing into a small, red luggage bag. She was surprised in general that Christa let her into the bedroom of her tiny apartment fifteen minutes away from the diner. Outside her bedroom window, Ymir could see the complex pool down below, glowing that eerie blue-green. There was an old couple getting handsy in the jacuzzi not far from from the pool. She scrunched her face and shut the blinds.

“Okay!” Christa exclaimed, letting out a little huff. “I think I have everything.”

“I think you do.”

She helped Christa carry the luggage to her car, attempting to look stronger than she actually was by carrying the two-ton thing down the stairs instead of just dragging it down and letting the wheels slam on each step.

Once they got into the car, Ymir pulled out her phone and opened up a map.

“What are you doing?” Christa asked.

“I want to know where we’re going, that’s all.”

“But I thought we agreed that we didn’t know where we’re going?”

Ymir looked up from her phone and half-smiled. She hesitated, but she threw it into the mess of a back seat. “You’re cute - and you’re smart!”

Inside, she felt hollow, as if her insides disappeared in the void of embarrassment. _Oh my god. Why did I just say that. Fuck._

Christa blushed. She patted Ymir’s shoulder with the back of her hand. “Let’s just get out of here.”

Ymir nodded, and started the car.

It took her an extra five minutes to get back on the highway. The gas tank was, hopefully, full enough to get them to another stop that, hopefully, had a gas station. But right then, the road was as open as the topics of potential conversation. Ymir’s free hand shook as she drove straight onward, perhaps from the coffee, but really from waiting for Christa to start asking her questions.

“So. I don’t think I asked you enough questions when I was at work,” Christa said.

Ymir’s hand shook faster, and more frantically. She tried to play it cool, and ran her fingers through her tied hair. Her hair ended up looking messier.

“What do you want to know?” she asked, hiding the trembles in her voice by speaking a little deeper than she actually did.

“Well, what did you do before you wanted to take this trip? You told me about your roommates, how you lived across a park...you had a job, right?”

She scoffed. “Yeah. I had a job, all right.”

“Where at?”

She paused. “A library,” she mumbled.

“Where?”

“A library,” she said again, even softer.

“You know damn well I can’t hear you.”

“A library,” Ymir sighed out. “I’m- I used to be a librarian.”

“You quit your job to go on this road trip?”

“Ye- well, no I mea- my situation is complicated, okay?”

Christa repositioned herself in her seat to face Ymir, who’s doing her best to keep her eyes on the road. Lord knows they’ll swerve if she takes one good look at her.

“Complicated. How can it be so complicated? You left. Big deal.”

“Yeah, it kind of is,” Ymir said with a little more force. “Leaving everything behind to try and find something better. That’s a big fucking deal.”

Christa turned back around in her seat. Ymir settled in, but her hand continued to shake. She tried to put it on the steering wheel. It helped a little bit. It’s quiet. Ymir turned on the radio and tuned it to the first station that wasn’t static or an old man talking about politics. She couldn’t recognize the artist or the song, but it was soft enough and not too jarring to maybe diffuse the tension. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Christa holding back sways to the tune of the song.

“You into this stuff?”

“I’ve only heard the cover.”

“Hmm.”

“You know,” Christa said suddenly, facing her window, “what if you’re some serial killer? Like, what if you used your charm to pick me up, and suddenly you’ll drive down the dirt to shoot me in the head and bury me without as much as a spit on the ground?”

Ymir’s stomach really did turn as she spoke. She could feel the digested late-night breakfast churn and possibly come back up.

“Jesus, and you think I might be a serial killer?”

“What? You convinced me to come with you on this ‘trip,’ and-”

“Hey, you’re the one that wanted to get out of here.”

_What is this?_ Ymir thought. _This isn’t the girl I talked to at the diner. Or maybe it is..._

Christa shook her head. “I’m sorry. I just...I’ve never done this before.”

“What, you’ve never been picked up by a complicated lesbian?”

“No, I- wait, you’re a lesbian?” Her eyes widened, blue enough to keep Ymir awake for another thousand miles.

_Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck_. She could feel the eggs reaching the back of her throat. She made a poor excuse of a nod and tried not to stomp on the gas out of nervousness.

Christa smiled. “Me too,” she said softly.

“What?” Ymir cracked.

She shook her head. “Nothing. It’s not important.”

“You literally just thought I was a serial killer two seconds ago. Am I that much more threatening that I’m into girls?”

“Shut up! I’m one too!” Christa cried. “I...I’m one too.”

Ymir swallowed and didn’t feel like she was going to vomit anymore. Her heart rate returned to normal, if normal counted as the equivalent of a drumroll. She took an audible breath.

“Okay. So far, I got that you’re a waitress, you probably like old music, and you’re gay.”

“And you used to be a librarian, you’re not a serial killer, and you’re also gay.”

The two laughed quietly. Ymir looked ahead at a sign on the side of a road, saying “Roseville,” about fifty miles away.

“Hey, look. There’s a town called Roseville fifty miles away. Wanna stop there?”

“Sure,” Christa yawned. Her eyes slowly drooped and she leaned towards the window.

“Sure,” Ymir repeated.

The song continued to play as Christa drifted off to sleep and Ymir accelerated comfortably forward on the road ahead. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song I was thinking of that Ymir turned to on the radio is "You Really Got a Hold On Me" by Smokey Robinson & The Miracles. Christa's thinking of the She & Him cover. :)
> 
> Thanks for reading! Comments, suggestions, and kudos are always appreciated. <3

**Author's Note:**

> Bonus: They stop at Christa's apartment first to grab some stuff and Ymir realizes that when apartments don't smell like sugar and chocolate they smell like wood shavings and leftover Chinese food.
> 
> I kind of like this au. Maybe I'll continue it. Maybe.
> 
> Comments and kudos are always appreciated. :)
> 
> *Note 4 October 2014 - after some thought plus you guys' requests, I think I WILL continue this story! Unfortunately, school has taken up a lot of my time, so I don't think I'll start writing until this December, so many apologies for that. Thanks so much for the support!


End file.
